~A/N: Hey Dear Readers! I think I forgot to mention it, but Volume 1 of this story is available on Amazon for Kindle, Paperback, and Hardcover! (Chapters 1-31). It's all edited and formatted by me, so take that for what you will. But, if you'd like to have a physical copy of the story (or you favor your kindle), and would like to support me financially, please do consider buying volume 1 here: won't be taking down any chapters from my NovelBin pages, and if you don't already know, I actually don't get a lot of profit from Amazon's physical copies, so please don't feel obligated! Just know that I'll greatly appreciate you! :D
Thank you all for reading so loyally! 1,000 chapters, here we come! Hahahaha!~
***
Two large dragons are noticeably flying through the sky high over Kernuules. Even in spite of the distance, they are easy to spot, especially after a white light is cast down upon the woodland archfiend that seems to vaporize the devil in a gigantic fiery explosion that sends a sinister mushroom high into the sky.
Rumors have spread throughout the Citadel's surrounding villages of a similar phenomenon on the day that magic power briefly left all with magic. Even goblins felt the effects that day, though minimally so. It is said a cloud of death reached higher into the sky than dragons could fly, and that it cast a hurricane-force wind spell for hundreds of miles. It strains credulity, and yet, a human who seems no more imposing than a civilian at a glance brought all of the dragons to heel, claimed the demon queen, and has now taken on an enforcer of Alkus Gristak.
Hap watches in absolute awe from the airship carrying them away. The blast caused a boom to rattle him to his bones, as well as shaking the shuttle, but it seems more awe-inspiring more than frightening.
"Her Greatness is something..." murmurs Mosko.
"Wh-What?" asks Hap, looking at the elder goblin. The dattakoriens managed to gather up the goblins in shuttles, and Hap found his way onto the same one with the four martyrs who managed to be rescued. Klur is unconscious, and Locke and Olk are barely maintaining consciousness themselves. Mosko is doing his best to watch alongside Hap, but the younger goblin is still baffled.
"H-Her Grace?"
The aging goblin warrior nods. "That was raw magic power. I've seen powerful talllings use magic like that a few times, but never so destructive. Only our great Empress Hekate is so powerful. I'm certain of it."
"I... I thought that was the Emperor's Fiendbreakers," replies the youngest goblin of Grendel Six.
"Hah! You fool. Look there." Mosko points, and the shuttle's height gives an easy view of the whole forest, where Kernuules is already reforming itself, likely at one of the other magic circles.
"The Emperor came to slay Kernuules. Her Greatness was just helping us escape the Emperor's Calamity.
As if to confirm this fact, the second of the two blue dragons, the larger of the two visible, banks towards the recovering colossus. Meanwhile, the leading dragon starts to ascend rapidly, flapping broad wings and casting magic to move even more quickly.
Hekate, if Mosko is right, carries the power of the greatest mages in the world.
Mosko manages to chuckle after the long day they've had. Seeing the dragons against the night sky, which is relatively easy for goblins, it is refreshing. Inspiring even.
"Our great Empress, the Mistress of Calamity..." murmurs Mosko. "Show it to me! Before I die! Show me the power of the Harbinger!" The aging goblin begins laughing maniacally, and Hap isn't sure he wants to see something more powerful than Hekate's attack, which lit up the world for a brief moment. "Behold, our glorious Emperor! Hahahahaha!"
As if his prayers actually reached the human ruler of the Fievegal, there's a small magic flash from the second dragon's side.
Hap is a young goblin, so his mind is still flexible. He doesn't know how much superstition he believes in, other than he knows many of the stories, and some of them carry enough weight.
A single person rips the air apart in a way that convinces the young goblin that whatever mythological being any race speaks of can be killed by a lone human far beyond Hap's comprehension.
For, the shredding of the sky that he witnesses is only a precursor.
Lightning explodes outwards in all directions from the side of the dragon, quickly obscuring the avian lord and his human rider from view. In that same instant, divine light brighter even than Hekate's attack illuminates the whole sky as a shockwave races out. Unlike Hekate's attack, which was seemingly pure white light, even when it detonated, Daniel's attack produces a myriad of colors, most notably bright orange and red.
And, that streak of colorful light touches the ground where Kernuules is emerging again, before an eruption bursts forth from the very ground.
The first blast of the shockwave of Daniel summoning his attack reaches the shuttle and rattles everyone on board, causing many to cry out in surprise as the vessel lurches violently. Then, the clap of thunder from the lightning bolt-like streak, distorted by the rumbling crackles of the stray lightning that flashed off to the sides.
Last is the eruption, which has the most powerful shockwave of all, nearly knocking the shuttle from the sky. Mosko has fallen to his hands and knees, but when he looks up, he cries out in absolute joy. "Yesss! How simple! How divine! It was always so obvious now!"
"What the hell are you talking about!?" snaps Locke.
"Look! It is Alkus Gristak! The chains! The chains have been summoned by the Harbinger! He'll drag Koggus Gristak back to where he belongs! Hahahahah! Oh great ruler of all! Thank you! Thank you so much for bestowing this beautiful sight on this old goblin! Hahahaha!" Mosko begins crying as he bows on the floor, sobbing with tears of ecstasy, relief, and possibly a little madness.
Hap watches what can only be described as lava spraying high into the sky. The glow does dim rather quickly, compared to what is described in legends about the chains of Alkus Gristak bursting forth.
Regardless, flashes of lightning dance between the super-heated dirt and rock spraying like a fountain from the ground in the most devastating attack Hap could ever imagine.
And, he has seen the dragons breathe fire.
Something compels the young goblin to lower to his knees, and he mirrors the posture of the weeping elder goblin, praising a god in mortal form.
Naturally, if they were privy to the words Daniel said just before summoning the attack, they would be immortalized in the history of the goblins the world over alongside the near-universal name for their equivalent to hell.
And, of course, if Daniel knew what the goblins of Grendel Six were doing...
***
Daniel observes the first successful kinetic bombardment using his spontaneously-developed 'Fiendbreaker'. In science fiction, and even real world speculation, a weapon system was designed to drop tungsten rods from orbit. Because the metal alone could withstand the heat from re-entry friction and ionization, it was able to pick up speed most of its way back to earth, and wouldn't slow down much from air resistance due to being effectively a giant metal telephone pole.
The original idea was that it would hit with the force comparable to nuclear weapons, without the radioactive fallout, and was appropriately termed 'Rods from God'. However, the actual math bears out much lower results, comparable more to double-digit tons of TNT, versus the kilotons, or several thousand, of the same standard for the weakest atomic bombs.
Daniel didn't have 20 foot long rods of tungsten lying around the Citadel, since he hadn't really planned to use this style of weapon when he doesn't typically need superweapons. However, the process is what allows him to work around the drawbacks Earth scientists had to deal with when planning the same destructive force.
By using portals linked to each other in the vacuum room Xyreko created and allowing freshly cut and limbed trees that were scheduled for lumber to fall from top portal to bottom portal, which would return it to the top portal, the trees were in an endless freefall in gravity, meaning they were constantly getting faster and faster.
Upon opening a new portal below the bottom portal and closing that one, Daniel was able to bring the near-lightning speed timbers to the battlefield aimed at Kernuules.
And, the results were more impressive than he expected.
The first tree brought through seems to have vaporized as it pretty literally 'impacted' the air at ballistic speeds the rail gun would be envious of. The instant spike in friction and heat seems to have created a sort of plasma streak that still had all of the momentum, but not the same solid form. Regardless, the heat, velocity, and deceleration of the impact with the ground created a rapid expansion of the soil and rock, turning it briefly into lava until the pressure dissipated enough for it to cool back down rapidly. The kinetic energy is what Daniel was after, and seeing the brief glow of fire and static lightning made the mechanic nervous that, after all of his posturing to his dragon companions, particularly Geirahoel, he was going to burn the forest down himself.
Magnir stabilizes himself as Daniel keeps his balance thanks to a couple of guy ropes keeping him tied to the dragon's back. Unlike the dragons, dattakoriens, or goblins, Daniel can't see as clearly in the dark. But, thanks to the moon, he can tell where the large motions are.
And, he looks to the right when something stirs in his peripherals. "Magnir, to our right. Are you alright for another one?"
The blue dragon looks over his shoulder, nodding and giving a thumbs up.
Daniel exhales. He doesn't think Magnir heard him, but he'll just focus on the magic attacks. If Magnir didn't hear the mechanic, then there's no way Kernuules did, and the reason Daniel said any of the things that branded him the Harbinger of Calamity initially was because he wanted to rattle commanders on the battlefield in case they could strategize around his limited supply of explosives and bag of other tricks.
Xyreko's voice murmurs in his helmet, "Daniel... I think I've mentioned this before, but... Marry me."
He scoffs but keeps his eye on the growing shape in the darkness. Sure enough, Kernuules is especially frustrated this time as he tries to claw his way back into existence with rapid and frantic movements.
"I don't know how many summoning circles you have, Kernuules, but I've got trees, rocks, and Hekate." The mechanic flinches. He feels like he can hear a glare being directed at him. Nah. Must be nothing. "I do finally get why people enjoy spawn camping in video games. This is easy."
The mechanic has to watch for a time while Kernuules forms his body over the summoning circles. Even with magic power presumably pouring into them like a confluence of titanic rivers, there is only a glow of the mana lighting up the forest where the archfiend is rising. He can't see any signs of the circle itself, but the fact that Grendel Six found one suggests that they are fixed locations.
Daniel's heart is pounding, in spite of his apparently cool facade. He's not a fool. Once again, he's locked in battle with a creature that would put most mythological beings of Earth at the bottom of the food chain.
During the formation of the woodland devil's head, Daniel catches a glimpse of the amber glow that draws the head in around itself. Is that... a core...
Suddenly, the mechanic's heart tightens, and he feels an immense pressure is squeezing in all around him as if he was suddenly plunged deep into the ocean. He groans as he sinks to a kneel on Magnir's back, and the dragon looks over his shoulder with concern.
Daniel groans, but that's nothing compared to the thousands of voices he hears in his head, all screaming in fury.
The flanged tone of the myriad of voices gives it away, though. It's a good thing it's dark, because he's fairly certain his unwanted shadow has turned its gaze on him.
And, something about Kernuules has enraged it.
The human from Earth is in way over his head. He shouldn't be struggling against one mythical curse monster while fighting an ancient eldritch horror that is currently regenerating once more. He should be turning wrenches and wanting to smash sensitive electronics with a sledgehammer.
Daniel takes the deepest breath he can, even against the pain. He realizes he wasn't breathing, and he holds his hand up to reassure his dragon escort.
The wayward otherworlder can barely think. Focus. I need to finish the mission. Please... Just shut up...
He feels like he can hear a voice in his head calling out to him specifically, but it's drowned out in the wails of the Shadow.
Shut up...
Daniel lifts his right hand, positioning it with his thumb at a ninety degree angle with his fingers, setting it as one half of his 'targeting reticle' for Xyreko to aim the summoning spell.
He finally releases his chest with his left hand, continuing to force himself to breathe. He makes the same hand shape with his left hand, aiming carefully at Kernuules' center of mass, while still being in line with the summoning circle in the ground. He brings his thumb and fingertips together, making a triangle-shape and signaling Xyreko.
Unable to take the voices, Daniel growls out in English, "Silence..." It's all he can do to try to quiet the noise that is clawing at his mind.
The portal opens a second time, and the air explodes. Daniel doesn't even get to see the plasma streak because of the portal, but it's the only thing shielding him and Magnir from the 'impact' with the air and the lightning bolts that all but spray out in a near-three hundred degree incomplete sphere.
However, the second impact is just as impressive as the first, if not a bit more so. While the limbed trees accelerating in vacuum 'forever' will never stop picking up speed while the portals are open, the exit of the final portal pretty much just turns the solid matter into a physical equivalent to a laser.
The air 'impact' and ground impacts are more powerful, but not as dramatically so as one might expect, since only a few seconds passed between launches. Daniel asked Xyreko to start with 4 timbers, since they won't be able to deal with them safely, other than reversing the portals. If the mana is drained before the timbers are slowed down enough, the destruction to the interior of the Citadel will be much like what Daniel is doing to the forest.
While there will still be much of the large forest remaining at this rate, he is absolutely changing the landscape.
Thankfully, the screams die down, though it becomes an eerie groan.
Daniel growls in irritation, "Whether you like it or not, I'm putting this thing out of its misery once and for all. So just be quiet..."
Finally, the voices fall silent, and Daniel can feel the chill in the air around him. Magnir seems to be avoiding looking at him, focusing on staying steady in the air against the rapid changes in winds and air pressures all around them. It seems like individuals stronger in mana can detect the Shadow's presence when she does make it known, but weaker individuals don't necessarily notice.
Daniel catches his breath on his hands and knees, relieved that the pain is finally subsiding. It was the grip of the curse tightening, but thankfully, he doesn't have any mana because of it, so it couldn't do as much damage as the first time.
The Shadow doesn't say anything else, so Daniel is able to recover as Kernuules tries one more time to appear. Magnir points him out, finally glancing over his shoulder to check on Daniel.
The mechanic nods, "Yeah, I'm good. Let's get this over with so we can find the core."
"Are you really alright, Daniel? I was trying to talk to you, but..." Kaeralegier's voice sounds genuinely concerned.
I'll be fine. Thanks. Sorry about that...
"Hah! Don't mention it. I was moments from isolating you from mana to cut her connection off."
That was strange, but I need to finish this before I can worry about it.
"Fine. Then, let's hit all of them together. Kernuules is running out of mana, so it might not reappear after this one, but there are three more. If you don't mind, I'll make them visible to you. But... It's going to hurt."
You can do that? Daniel is surprised to learn this. True, in spite of his lack of mana, the sword-bound goddess can do quite a few things to him that would normally require mana, including communicate with him telepathically, as opposed to connecting to his helmet the way Xyreko and the Empresses can.
"Daniel, Daniel, Daniel. I'm a goddess. I may be trying to make myself a useless goddess, but I still have a lot of power left."
Sounds like I should be using you to power the Citadel, then.
"Try it, and the next time you draw me, you'll be holding the blade."
The mechanic manages to laugh softly.
"I should be making you work harder to drain my mana. Hey, I need you to fight Hekate and Gold at the same time. That should work."
Can we kill Kernuules first?
"Right. So, do you want to do it my way?"
Daniel nods. If Kernuules isn't able to regenerate after this attack, but isn't completely destroyed, it will only continue to be a threat, and the forest is too large to try to detour around for expansion of the Fievegal and trade with the various tribes of the west.
"Let's do this... Xyreko, I'm going to point out the remaining four targets one after the other. Please just trust me and send the next four shots."
"Understood, Daniel. Be prepared to ask questions afterwards. There are three shots currently in acceleration and I just started the last one. I don't know enough about this method, but if it will work, I'll send it as soon as you target the last zone."
"Send it. We'll target the closest one last to make the most use of the energy it will have."
"Leave it to me, Daniel. Standing by. Oh, and I've registered the casting word, so be sure to say it when you are ready to fire."
"What?" asks Daniel.
"The casting word. '[Silence]'. That will be my confirmation."
Daniel is locked in thought for a moment, and a barking-like sound comes from Magnir. He can speak in his dragon form, but he's not blocking wind with magic the way that Reigleif is for her group, so quick, distinct sounds are easier to signal the mechanic than speaking over the rushing wind.
"Right! I'm on it! Magnir, take us over the uncovered magic circle while I target the others, since it's also disabled by anti-magic plates."
The dragon nods and Daniel states quietly, "Go ahead, Kaeralegier."
"Brace yourself, Daniel. I won't let you die while I'm tied to you, but you're not going to enjoy it."
True to her word, Daniel feels something he can only describe as hot liquid being injected into his skull cavity, but he can feel it spreading and flowing through his brain. The sensation all but literally slithers in behind his eyes, and his vision goes blurry for a moment as he struggles to endure. As his hidden guardian goddess mentioned, it's an immense amount of mental pain, like a whole other person is trying to squeeze into his skull. It's focused more on his mind, rather than his heart with the Shadow's curse.
"Ready Daniel. Do you see it?"
The mechanic does his best to focus. He has a similar feeling to when he's drunk, or even when he's listless for one reason or another. He can see, but to actually make sense of everything is much more difficult.
He once saw a TV episode where the production team did a rather good job of having the character in question 'see sound'; it was chaotic and disorienting blends of color.
What Daniel can see now is less like his normal vision, and more like a topographic map created with an infrared camera, but one that uses the full spectrum of colors.
"This is how I 'see' the world right now. What you're seeing is the mana of everything."
It makes sense. Moving through the sky ahead of the group is a quartet of lights in varying intensity, matching everyone's suspected strength profiles of Hekate, Reignleif, Geirahoel, and Baeka.
And, he can see a swirling vortex coming from deep in the ground, concentrating into some sort of massive column as it forms into the shape that the mechanic can recognize as that belonging to Kernuules.
Likewise, several other slow-moving vortices of mana are swirling, like currents in the sea, but partially disrupted from the clouds of magical energy drifting into the distance that match where Fiendbreakers have already struck.
Couldn't you have helped us find the source of monsters like this? thinks the mechanic. He's not trying to be accusatory, but this looks exactly perfect for finding stagnant magic.
"Look around you. This place has some kind of device pulling mana in intentionally, but normally, it looks like a stirred pot, even with monster zones. If you were hoping it would be something as easy as finding a dungeon core and loot boxes, I would have told you sooner. Most of the sources are too deep to stand out like those magic devices down there. Which, if you haven't guessed, are our targets."
Daniel knows what she means. The whirlpools are somewhat lazy when Kernuules isn't regenerating, and only one spot seems to be completely stagnant, fading in color to a dark black.
Kernuules is almost fully spawned in, and the whirlpool around him has strung out the mana such that it has also faded to a much softer green color, as opposed to the bright blue, gold, or purple of more concentrated areas, from what he can tell.
Daniel aims his fingers at the concentrated body of mana forming the woodland Archfiend.
Daniel calls out, "Xyreko, Mark Target One."
"Marked."
"Mark Target Two..." Daniel aims at each of the remaining magical summoning devices, calling out their target names in turn. He has only seconds before Kernuules is fully formed, and the creature is already roaring in rage, concentrating magic towards itself.
"Say it, Daniel. Say it..."
Daniel grimaces mildly, but he has no reason to refuse. Xyreko has earned it.
In English, and with all of his commitment to avenging Grendel Six, Daniel growls coldly, "Silence."
***
"Mwahahahahaha!" exclaims Hekate as she watches the eruptions that explode out of the ground, violently eliminating Kernuules and all of his other spawn points. "That's my Fiance! Hahahaha!"
"Such power..." murmurs Baeka in wonder. She knew Daniel was capable of surprising feats, but seeing him normally defies knowing he can accomplish something like this. It's unbelievable.
"If only his power could..." starts Geirahoel, but she trails off. The feldrok teen looks at her with her ears folded back. "If only his power could 'what'?"
The orange dragon looks aside. "If only it could be passed on..."
"It can," retorts Hekate. "You and me can already do this much. We just need Xyreko's help."
Geirahoel shakes her head with a bitter smile. For those who have seen behind the curtain, Daniel is the most ordinary human being that has probably ever existed on Zenkon. Rather, he is abnormal because he is so uniquely mundane and powerless. With the curse, he is back to the state that he arrived in; weak and fragile.
And yet, his mind connects dots from his world to this one, granting the Fievegal the greatest might any Empire will likely ever wield.
It's a power that can easily be lost or given, but it can't be inherited in the way Geirahoel means.
"Then... why did you choose him?" asks Hekate skeptically. For the Feldrok Empress, there is no doubt in her mind. She cherishes Daniel as her first and truest friend in a desert of loneliness and mistreatment. She truly loves him with all of her heart. She would abandon or even destroy the Fievegal herself if it meant protecting Daniel and keeping him by her side.
But, Geirahoel once hated him. She still fears firearms for good reason. She's one of the many dragons that got to experience death at the hands of the Harbinger of Calamity.
And yet, she is widely agreed upon as Daniel's favorite consort.
"Because I love him..." murmurs the dragon. "Because... when I'm with him... I can't stop my heart from racing... When there's a challenge before him,... he'll drop everything to protect his friends... And for his family..." Geirahoel smiles. She truly, desperately hates when Daniel endangers himself, but she also can't help but admire his passion for protecting the people he loves. "He would fight the whole world."
Hekate smirks. "Right?" She puts her hands on her hips, declaring proudly, "We're the perfect pair."
Geirahoel laughs lightly, and as the debris from Daniel's final attack, as well as the echoes of the supersonic blasts, all finally finish their noisy clamor, an eerie quiet befalls the forest as Reignleif cruises casually with Hekate, Baeka, and Geirahoel riding comfortably on her back to observe. It feels like peace has found the forest in the wake of one of the most destructive events Zenkon has seen. The aftermath is infinitesimal compared to the Godkiller, and other than the sound, it wouldn't leave behind any anti-magic or poisons that could harm or be detected by their enemies.
Reignleif's voice asks via telepathy with both Geirahoel and Hekate, "I often wonder... If the Fiendbreakers don't work on the next one... What will Mukori do?"
The two empresses on their senior's back share a glance with each other, and then look at the flying dragon when she looks over her shoulder. The feeling they all share at this moment is one that banded them together in the first place.
The strange human from another world doesn't just bring futuristic technology from his old world to theirs.
He actively constructs the road to comfortably give his loved ones the future.
"I have the power..." remarks Hekate as she reaches her hand out idly. She creates a portal just like what Daniel had Xyreko produce, though Hekate's are much smaller. "I could have done that for him... So, why won't he let me make use of my power...?"
Geirahoel and Baeka are respectfully quiet. Baeka is the 'lowest ranked' person present, even though they don't really flex ranks within the inner circle.
However, Reignleif includes her this time as she offers her thought for everyone. "Because, if he destroyed the forest, he didn't want the responsibility to fall on you."
Hekate is quiet for a long time. While Geirahoel is Daniel's supposed favorite lover, since he intentionally leaves Hekate out of the running because of her age, Reignleif is the one who thinks the most like him.
Of course, Daniel's real motives were that Xyreko would be able to respond with much less explanation, while Hekate would have to work with Daniel to polish the ability.
The Feldrok Empress, not knowing this, grumbles, "I don't care about that... Why does he?"
"Because, when you truly are mature enough to make all of the decisions, he will be relying on you to live by his example. As you just said, you can already use this attack. But, if you use it without restraint, you will become an enemy of the world."
Hekate is quiet. That part makes sense.
"Being young is so stupid..." grumbles the feldrok, and the other three laugh lightly at her.
"Let's go. Mukori and Magnir seem to be going somewhere else." Geirahoel points, and Reignleif spots them as well, following the two.
"[Silence,]" murmurs Hekate in her deepest voice as she waits, causing the others to look. Her ears flatten in embarrassment as she smiles sheepishly. "That's the magic word. '[Silence.]'" She smiles reverently and happily. "He was so cool when he said it..."
The other three women laugh warmly. "Of course he is. He is my Mukori," declares Geirahoel proudly.
"We should think of a way to reward him," remarks Reignleif's voice telepathically. "Once more, we have not needed to cede territory to monsters."
Hekate nods in agreement. Even if she were to try to fight the Devourer now with so much absorbed power, Hekate doubts she could defeat it. Vaergraes is much more experienced at using magic, and she couldn't stop the Devourer, let alone defeat it with all of the dragons helping her.
That said, a very important thought crosses the raven-haired teen's mind.
What could we possibly give him that would make him as happy as...?
Images of the birthday gifts cross through Hekate's thoughts, and she can't stop her cheeks from feeling hot.
I'll think of something, I swear it!
With a new fire in her eyes, the feldrok teen urges Reignleif, "Reina! Quickly! We have to catch up!"
The others laugh warmly once more, since they aren't far behind Magnir, who is cautiously crawling across the ground in his massive dragon form, with Daniel still on his back.
Whatever Daniel is after now, it has the two men cautious.
As the women get closer, Hekate's confident expression starts to falter. Something pricks at her skin. It's a feeling she has known for most of her life, and which only curbed after Daniel dragged her close to her greatest fear and killed it before her eyes.
No! It... It can't be!
The feldrok girl's ears point upright, and her tail's fur stands on end, beginning to glow a faint blue as she prepares for battle.
Daniel!
***